New Deal/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby A robot, Moby and a boy, Tim, are standing atop the Hoover Dam. Tim cups his hands around his mouth and yells. His words echo. TIM: I am the great and powerful Tim! Tremble before my awesome... Tim's voice breaks and he stops yelling. Moby holds a hand over his mouth and laughs. Tim clears his throat and reads from a typed letter. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, What's the deal with the New Deal? From, Coboy. In order to understand the New Deal, we have to know about the Great Depression. An animation represents rapidly falling stock market prices. TIM: It all started with the stock market crash of October 29th, 1929, better known as Black Tuesday. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Well, the stock market crash itself didn't actually cause the Great Depression. It just sort of marked the beginning of a rough ten years. By 1932, the unemployment rate in the United States hit twenty-five percent! That means one out of four people in the workforce had no job. An image shows unemployed men lined up outside a factory. A sign says, Not hiring. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Back then, if you lost your job, you didn't get any help from the government. So if you were out of work, you were on your own. An image shows a family of three sharing a meal of a single chicken leg. TIM: Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected president in 1932, when the Depression was at its worst. An animation shows Franklin Roosevelt being sworn in as president. TIM: Roosevelt and his advisors had the idea that by giving people jobs and money, they would encourage people to spend and invest in the economy. They believed that spending would make companies more successful and spur them to hire new workers. Images illustrate the process that Tim describes. TIM: FDR started his New Deal, a set of programs that would create jobs and give people money. He started by setting up what were called alphabet agencies, like the FDIC, or Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which made sure that bank deposits were safe. The PWA, or Public Works Administration, created construction jobs for laborers. Other alphabet agencies helped out farmers, gave loans for new homes, and regulated the stock market. Images illustrate the Depression-era government agencies that Tim describes. TIM: These New Deal programs made people and businesses feel more confident about the economy. An animation shows a bank turning its sign from closed to open. TIM: The government also helped people by giving them food and money. An image shows a line of people receiving bread and cash. TIM: The New Deal programs were so popular FDR started a second round of New Deal projects. The WPA, or Works Progress Administration, created jobs for artists, writers, and musicians who had been left out of the first New Deal programs. Images illustrate the Depression-era government agencies that Tim describes. TIM: The Social Security Act of 1935 provided unemployment money for the jobless and a program of old-age benefits for retired people. Close-up animation shows the Social Security Act being signed. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Yeah, both of these programs still exist today! Public opinion was mixed about the New Deal. The programs cost a lot of money, and people were nervous about giving the federal government so much power. An image shows the White House. TIM:The same arguments about how much power the federal government should have are still going on today. But FDR stayed popular with voters. His weekly radio addresses to the country, called Fireside Chats, explained his policies in simple terms. An animation shows a family sitting by a fireplace listening to a radio. TIM: People appreciated that. Roosevelt was a persuasive speaker, and he gave Americans hope where they thought they had none. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Right. Who knows how long the Depression would have gone on without the New Deal. By the way, FDR was such a popular president that he was elected to four terms. Moby cups his hands around his mouth and emits an echoing beep. MOBY: Beep. The beep shakes the ground and a house far below them. TIM: OK, that was pretty impressive. Category:BrainPOP Transcripts Category:BrainPOP Social Studies Transcripts